The Purpose of the Central Curriculum

At Susquehanna, four distinctive university Learning Goals guide everything we do.

The Central Curriculum is our road map for achieving these goals. It enhances the knowledge learned from the coursework in our more than 60 majors and minors, and enriches participation in extracurricular and co-curricular activities.

With a strong liberal arts foundation, a skills-intensive focus, and an opportunity for cross-cultural experiences, the Central Curriculum supports the university’s Learning Goals in the following ways:

It creates graduates who are more aware of the creative, natural, societal and cultural forces that shape the world around them.

The Central Curriculum supports a knowledge of:

The richness of human thought and expression.

The ways humans have sought to explain the natural world.

The breadth of human interactions throughout the world, throughout time and into the present, and of the belief systems, values and practices through which those interactions are manifested.

It provides graduates with an integrated set of intellectual skills.

The Central Curriculum creates an ability to:

Think creatively and critically in order to analyze issues and make effective decisions.

Incorporate the methods of analysis from a range of academic disciplines in the natural and social sciences and humanities to understand and solve problems, and explore conflict.

Listen effectively and to articulate an informed opinion and argument orally and in writing.

Gather and evaluate information.

Work effectively with a team to analyze and solve problems.

Function with professional competency in a chosen discipline.

Understand that problems often elicit complex, conflicting and ambiguous responses.

It affords graduate a mature understanding of themselves and the world around them.

The Central Curriculum helps to create:

Knowledge of the limits and contexts of their own experience, and the ability to value the different experiences of others.

The ability to examine their own strengths and weaknesses critically and realistically.

Willingness to strive for responsible actions personally and interpersonally.

It fosters a sense of personal ethical responsibility.

The Central Curriculum focuses on:

Interaction with the natural environment.

Continued growth and development as a contributing member of a number of communities within human society.